Chapter 3: Re: I'm Really a Witch - Tying the Red Thread with One Hand (Patreon)

"Lia, you want Miss Fortuna and Petelgeuse... Uncle Geuse... to end up together too, don't you?" Pandora seemed entirely unbothered by Fortuna's glare... yeah, right!

She was a nervous wreck, okay! But if this step worked, it would mean the whole ordeal was about to end.

"Y-yes..." Feeling the touch atop her head, Emilia gave a stiff nod.

"Miss Fortuna really does get worked up so easily." Pandora then walked back to Petelgeuse's side. "Well, in that case, even with the little princess's blessing, I'm not sure I could rest easy entrusting someone as fine a subordinate as Petelgeuse to you..."

Oh! She'd decided! She was absolutely majoring in theater in college! Uh, wait... would she even get to go to college?

At that, Fortuna let out a breath of relief, a little embarrassed, and dispersed the icicles surrounding her.

"My lady..." Looking at the platinum-haired girl before him, Petelgeuse had no idea what to say anymore.

"Well then, it just so happens someone's here to witness this for the two of you." Pandora glanced toward the forest nearby.

"Lady Fortuna!" As if to prove Pandora's words, a voice rang out from among the trees.

"Archi?" Hearing the familiar voice, Fortuna turned in surprise toward its source.

Moments later,

"Lord Geuse..." A yellow-haired man came running out of the forest.

"Thank goodness both of you and Emilia are safe..." When he'd woken up in the forest just now, the sounds echoing through it had scared him half to death, but—

every trace of the black serpent had vanished completely! He was still alive! His body was unharmed! Those were the things that shocked him most.

So the first thing he did was run here as fast as he could.

"This..." Looking at Pandora standing beside Petelgeuse, even Archi found himself struck by the girl's beauty.

"Sir, my name is Pandora..." Pandora said, smiling at Archi. "Or, if you'd prefer, you may call me the Witch of Vainglory."

"Ah... hello, Witch of Vainglory..." Halfway through his greeting, Archi suddenly snapped his gaze back to Pandora.

This girl was the very enemy Lady Fortuna had wanted to kill all along!

"Shuma!" A chant rang out, and a blade of wind shot toward Pandora.

Petelgeuse, still dazed from the Witch Factor's disruption, and Fortuna, who hadn't reacted in time at all—

A sharp shhk!

Blood scattered across the ground as the platinum-haired girl collapsed.

"Archi!" Seeing him about to unleash a second spell, Fortuna cried out urgently.

"Lady Fortuna! Don't worry! I'll avenge them, I swear it!" Archi's eyes only hardened with resolve as he swung out another blade of wind.

A wet fwsh!

Pandora, lying on the ground, split cleanly in two at the sound.

"Stop..." Watching Archi waste his effort, Fortuna sighed helplessly.

"It's alright now, Lady Fortuna, the enemy's already—" Archi just smiled, but before he could finish—

"Sir, you must know what pain feels like, don't you? What you just did was rather rude." Pandora's voice came from right behind him.

She could tell her way of speaking was influenced by the original body—like just now, gentle in tone while still conveying respect for the other person.

And honestly, that first blade of wind really had struck true, but Pandora hadn't felt anything extra from it.

She'd simply activated her Authority out of curiosity.

It had felt like drifting weightlessly down onto the snow.

A strange, wondrous feeling...

"You—" Archi's eyes went wide at the sight of Pandora standing unscathed in the snow.

"Alright, Archi, you've done enough. Go rest for a bit." Fortuna said, agreeing with the sentiment.

"But..." Archi wanted to say more, but seeing the resolve in Fortuna's eyes, he could only sigh. "Understood."

Then he silently walked over to Petelgeuse and helped him up.

"He absorbed the Witch Factor of Sloth, so he's a bit disoriented." Pandora explained to Archi.

That only left Archi even more confused about what Pandora was actually trying to do.

"Then is there a way to remove this Factor?" Even Fortuna, seeing how much Petelgeuse was suffering, found herself pinning her hopes on Pandora.

Pandora shook her head.

"There's no need to remove it." After all, the original body had said it couldn't be removed, and she'd quietly tried herself. "As long as Archbishop Petelgeuse doesn't use his Witch's Authority, he'll be fine. He just needs to rest more than usual."

As she spoke, Pandora suddenly sighed.

"I'm sorry. I never expected Archbishop Petelgeuse would actually go and absorb a Witch Factor."

There was no helping it—this was a mess the original body truly couldn't shake off.

"I understand..." Fortuna nodded at that.

That's just how people are: hold a grudge against someone, and hostility toward them comes naturally. But once that grudge is untangled, and the other person offers a sincere apology, forgiveness comes just as naturally.

So when she heard Fortuna say this, Pandora understood.

Even if Fortuna still didn't fully trust her, she'd at least come around halfway.

"Lady Pandora, I'm fine." Petelgeuse said, shaking his head.

The whole scene left Archi utterly baffled. He had no idea what had happened between the three of them—something about it just felt off...

"Alright, if that's the case, would you mind leaving now?" Fortuna said at this point.

"I'm afraid I can't—my purpose here still isn't fulfilled." Pandora walked up beside her, standing firm under her wary gaze.

"Archbishop Petelgeuse, could you come here?" She then waved Geuse over.

"Lady Pandora..." Geuse hesitated a moment, then rubbed his head. "Lady Fortuna, we..."

"Don't say it! I know already!" At that, Fortuna quickly clamped a hand over Petelgeuse's mouth.

Sure, she'd been the one to confess her feelings earlier—but she'd said it fully resolved to die. Who could have known...

"Well then, Miss Fortuna, now that we have Mister Archi and Little Princess Emilia here..." Pandora smiled. "Your love will be witnessed."